Mail delivery and receiving device



C. L. BIGGS.

MAIL DELIVERY AND RECEIVING DEVICE.

APPLICATION FILED DEC. 24, 1920.

Patented Aug. 8 1922?.

2 SHEETS-SHEET I.

I N VEN TOR.

E? ATTORNEY.

2 SHEETS-SIIEET 2.

. g $2 s x INVENTOR.

A TTORNE Y.

I C. L. BIGGS,

MAIL DELIVERY AND IRIZQEIVIIIG DEVICE.

APPLICATION FILED DEC. 24, I920.

Pafcmtad Aug 8 11922 I IA J I AII I. I 55 I317 III: II I I III III I I I WIII J J II I Cir CHARLES L. BIGGS, OF MEREDIAN, TENNESSEE.

MAIL DELIVERY AND RECEIVING DEVICE.

Application filed. December 24-, 1920.

To all whom't may concern:

Be it known that l, Oneness L. lheos, citizen of the United bltates, residing at li'ieredian, in the county of Lauderdale and State of Tennessee, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Mail Delivery and Receiving Devices, of which the following is a specification.

The invention relates to improvements in an automatic mail delivery and receiving device adapted for application to railway trains.

in mail transferring devices, as now generally used on railways, many mail bags are torn or destroyed when transferred to and from the moving railwa car. This damage is generally attributed to the fact that the bags, when being delivered to a car, are usually held on a stationary support, or not mounted for such. a freedom of movement as to prevent the impact of the railway car arm when suddenly engaging the bag to serve to tear or mutilate the bag. has been proposed to employ various typ s of apparatus to overcome this diiiiculty, but as far as I am aware, these devices have not been entirely successful in operation.

It is an object of the present invention to provide an automatic delivery and receiving mechanism for cars, in which the bag to be delivered, and the one to be received, are transferred without a sudden impact or jar, so that little or no injury to the bag can result.

With the foregoing conception in mind, my invention primarily comprises the utilization of a movable carrier suspended parallel with the railway track and having means for supporting a bag to be delivered to the railway car and to likewise receive and retain a bag from said car. The invention more specifically embraces a carrier that is adapted to move with the train when engaged by the catcher and dcpositor arm of the mail car, the parts being so arranged that the carrier is given an initial movement while a bag is being deposited from the catcher and depositor arm to the carrier, and during the movement of said carrier the bag to be delivered to the train is engaged by the railway car travelling at a greater rate of speed than the carrier when the carrier has reached such a position that its arm engages the bag to be delivered to the car.

A further object of the invention is to Specification of Letters Patent.

Patented Aug. 8, 1922.

Serial No. 432,894.

provide an automatic device of this character, which is exceedingly simple in construction and one that may be very easily manufactured, and applied to a standard railway car without materially altering or changing the structure thereof.

In the accompanying drawings I have shown a single embodiment of my invention, but itwill be understood that the same is subject to many changes in construction and arrangement of parts.

in the drawings, Figure 1 represents a view of my device applied adjacent a railway car. Figure 2 is a top plan view. Figure 3 is a detail view with parts in section. Figure ,4: .is an end View; and, Figure 5 is a sectional view on line of Figure 2.

Referring now more particularly to the drawings, wherein like reference characters indicate corresponding parts, the numeral 1 designates a railroad track upon which a train bearing the usual railway car 2 is adapted to travel. This car is of the usual construction, and my invention contemplates the provision of a means for automatically delivering and depositing mail sacks to and from the car. To this end the car is provided with an outstanding channel-shaped bracket 3, to which is preferably pivotally connected a second channel bar 4, which in turn receives the pivoted mail sack delivery and catcher arm 5. This arm is of a special formation, having an elongated hook ex tension 6 at one side and a rearward extension 7 at the opposite side intermediate the ends of the arm. The forward extension is fashioned with a rearwardly projecting portion 8 separated from the body of the extension 6 over which a mail sack rides and is adapted to receive and lie upon said extension 6 under the extension 8 to prevent the accidental disengagement of said sack supported by a sack supporting ring. The rear extension 7 of the arm has attached thereto a resilient engaging member 9 preferably consisting of a spring hook, and is likewise formed with a lateral guarc'l 10, this extension serving to receive a mail bag retaining hook, whlch will be herein after described and to support the same to be engaged by the carrier 11, the construction and function of which will hereinafter appear. l/Vhile I have disclosed the arm as consisting of the sections 3, 4- and 5, this is merely for the sake of convenience to per mit the arm to be folded when passed through the mail car door 11 but of course if this car door is sufficiently wide, then the arm can consist of a single piece, it such a structure is found desirable.

To avoid impact and dangerous jars upon and is adapted to receive the travelling carrier 11, having the upstanding supports re-" ceiving the antifriction roller bearings 14;, so as to facilitate a free and'easy movement of the carrier over the track 13. The carrier is provided with apertures through which the track passes, and any convenient type of antifriction roller may be employed. The-carrier is shown as consisting-of two arms mergingat the point 15 to which is attached the supporting member 16, extending rearwardly and forwardly of the point 15. It has been found to be highly desirable to provide a carrier which freely moves upon a slight contact with the railway car, as experience has demonstrated that when such a carrier is employed, the mail sacks will not be subjected to a sudden jar, and likewise theparts of the apparatus, including both thecarrier and the receiving and delivery arm attached to the car, are not subject to injury. V

The mail sacks 'are preferably suspended by hooks or loops 17, having extensions 18,

and these bags may be united to the hoops in any approved manner. The supporting member 16 of the carrier 11' at each end is provided with-a pivoted hook 19, and with the extensions 20 at the under side thereof projecting laterally beyond the vertical plane of the sidesof saidmember. These hooks and laterallyprojecting members 20 serve to receive and support the mail bag sup 3ortingloop 17, the hook members en gaging and retaining the. bag supporting loopsywhile the members 20 serve to engage said loops and prevent a movement thereof when the bags are being transferred.

Assuming that a car is moving in the direction of the arrow in Figurel, and that a mail bag is to be dropped from the car, and oneto be taken on the car, the mail delivering. and receiving .arm on the railway car is moved to an extended position- A bag has beenv attached to therearward extension 7 of said arm by inserting the smaller loop 18 of a bag supporting member upon said extension, which loop is engaged by the resilient'retainer 9, and also by the lateral member 10. A bag is likewise positioned upon the forward end of the member 16 of the carrier 11, the small loop of the bag sup 5 porting member being engaged by. the spring retainer 19, and also by the lateral member 20, the carrier being disposed. at the end of its trackin the direction of the approach of the train. [As the train approaches, the relatively large loop'li" of the bag supported upon the rear end 7 of the railway car arm rides over the rear extension of the member 16 of the carrier, causing the carrier to begin to move with. the train by contact therewith, and as soon as the ringhas passed over the front end of the hook 19" at the rear end of the member 16, the loop isdisengaged from the extension 7, and drops upon this member behind the raised portion of the hook 19 whereby the bag is transferred from the train to the carrier. The carrier is of course moving at this time, and during the continued moven'ient'of the railway train which is of a rate greater than the speed of the carrier, the forward portion 6 of the delivery and receiving arm overtakes the carrier and this forward portion rides through the looped end of the bag suspended atthe forward part of the member 15 and retained in positionby the spring 19. As the end of the raili ay arm passes through this loop,- the spccnl of the railway train continues to overtake the carrier, and when the "extension 6 has entirely passed throl'igh the large loop 17 and the sides of the loop engage therailway arm 5, the 10013218 withdrawn from the member 15 and deposited upon this forward extension 6 behind the guard 8 carried thereby. The railway clerk then merely moves or folds the arm 5- inwardly to move the bag into the interior of the car.

It will be seen that the operation of the device is entirely automatic, and that the parts thereof are not subjected to any jars or strains. It will also be observed that when abag is being deposited from the railway train 'to the carrier, this imparts to the carrier its forward movement so that when the bag is removed from the carrier to the train arm, both the carrierand the train arm are in motion, the train merely travelling at a greater rate of. speed than the carrier and the loop supporting the bag is gently removed from the carrier.

The various portions of the receiving and delivering arm are connected together by pivot pins, and if desirable, the link lot the arm may be fastened in an extended position by a locking pin 21, passing through apertures inthe channel extension 3 and this link. I

Having thus described the invention, what I claim is:

1. A mechanism of the character de scribed comprising a track, a'carrier movable over said track, a bagsupporting means on said carrier, a bagreceiving'means on said carrier, a railway car movable parallel with the bag receiving means on the carrier and to remove a bag supported on said carrier for delivery to the railway car.

2. A mechanism of the character described comprising a track, a carrier movable over said track, a bag supporting means on said carrier, a bag receiving means on said carrier, a railway car movable parallel with the carrier, and means projecting from said car for supporting a bag to be received by the bag receiving means on the carrier and to remove a bag supported on saidcarrier for delivery to the railway car, said last mentioned bag being removed from the carrier while said carrier is moving in the direction of the movement of the railway car.

3. A mechanism of the character de scribed, comprising a track, a carrier movable over said track, and antifriction means upon which said carrier travels, bag supporting means on said carrier disposed near each end thereof, one of said means being adapted to receive a bag to be transferred to a railway car, and the other to receive a bag from said railway car, said bag supporting means including resilient fastening devices adapted to receive and retain the bag in position to be delivered to the car, said fastening devices being formed with extensions acting as hooks to retain a bag delivered from the railway car on said carrier.

4. A mechanism of the character described, comprising a carrier support, a. carrier movable thereover, said carrier having a bag carrying member supported thereby,

the bag carrying member at one end being adapted to engage and retain a bag support for a bag to be delivered to a railway car, the other end being adapted to receive a carrier transferred from said car, means projecting from the railway car for supporting the bag to be transferred to the carrier and to impart an initial movement to said carrier, said means being also provided with an extension adapted to engage a bag support during the movement of the carrier to remove said bag from the carrier.

5. A mechanism of the character de scribed, comprising a. carrier support, a movable carrier suspended upon said support, said carrier having a bag receiving and supporting means, a retaining device for maintaining a bag supported thereon in position to be delivered to a railway car, an arm consisting of connected links projecting from the car, a forward extension from said arm on one side intermediate its ends, and a rearward extension on said arm, said rearward extension being fashioned to support a member carrying a mail bag, and the forward extension being adapted to remove a bag from the carrier, the said arm serving to first deposit its bag upon the carrier and impart a movement thereto, and to then remove the bag from the carrier for delivery to the railway car.

6. A device of the character described, comprising a track, a carrier movable over said track, bag supporting and bag receiv ing means on said carrier, said carrier being movable on its track in a direction parallel with a railroad track over which a railway car moves, and a projecting member on said car for supporting a bag to be received by said bag carrier and to there-after remove a bag from said bag supporting means of the carrier for delivery to the railway car.

7. A device of the character described, comprising a track, a carrier movable over said track, bag supporting and bag receiving means on said carrier, said carrier being movable on its track in a direction parallel with a railroad track over which a railway car moves, and a projecting member on said car for supporting a bag to be received by said bag carrier and to thereafter remove a bag from said bag supporting means of the carrier for delivery to the railway car, said carrier being provided with a substantially horizontal supporting member for gripping devices at each end.

8. A device of the character described, comprising an elongated track, and means for supporting the same, a carrier suspended on said track for free movement therecver, bag supporting and receiving means on said carrier, said track being positioned adjacent a rail bed over which a. railway car moves and in parallel relation therewith, and means projecting from the car for support ing a bag to be received by said receiving means on the carrier, said projecting means being also adapted to remove a bag from the bag supporting means of the carrier.

9. A device of the character described, comprising an elongated track, and means for supporting the same, a carrier suspended on said track for free movement thereover, bag supporting and receiving means on said carrier, said track being positioned adjacent a rail bed over which a railway car moves and in parallel relation therewith, and means projecting from the car for supporting a bag to be received by said receiving means on the carrier, said projecting means being also adapted to remove a bag from the bag supporting means of the carrier, and comprising an elongated member having means at one end for retaining a bag support and at its opposite end with means for preventing the displacement of a bag removed from said bag supporting carrier.

In testimony whereof I afiix my signature.

CHARLES L. BIGGS. 

